Knot science

I have been wanting (and still may) start a thread on this subject! I'll post some of my favorite links in a little bit.

A few years ago I was in need of some knot info. I was working as a testing technician for a company that samples smoke stack emissions and no one I worked with had any knot knowledge beyond the bowline. Having forgotten my knots from a little bit of outdoors and minimal sailing I went to the web and was quickly astounded by the science. There is really quite a large amount of info on good 'ol knots!

I'm knot foolin!

cr3

So, I ran across this little factoid: "Topologically, a knotted string is not a real knot, as long as its ends are free. That's because either of the ends can always thread back through any entanglement and undo the knot. An open string, no matter how garbled, is the same as a straight segment."

That seems to suggest that DNA strands might not be knots (but we knew that anyway didn't we, or did we?). Makes one think, where lies the end of the DNA strand? Maybe it's in my tackle box along with all that $#&&#$$... mess that used to be my nice 10 lb monofilament spool. Could one end ever thread back through the ...?

My knotty pine den is giving me knotty stares.

Ah! They obviously did not read my CR4 Bell-Knot challenge I posted to the Challenge Puzzle.

We had the whole of CR4 working on that problem!

knoty science !

Not being a kiting expert, it makes me a perfect knot expert ! why do knots happen ? after discussing with other kit... knots experts, we conclude that it is a question of surface molecular structure SMS. we have to define what is a knot. Entanglement can form knots , but not always. Mariners purposely create knots for various uses. Some of them don't work well with specific ropes surfaces. So , if the surface molecular structures SMS have a capacity to bond , knots will be very effective. We are doing experiments on sparying knot "preverting" lubes on kite strings. A screw is a sort of a knot, the more rusted, the harder it is to pull it out, ie lubes. Hence the release forces vectors directions is crucial to the effectiveness of the knots. Funny enough we found that the loosen up of a string acts like a vibration on a screw, it entangles the knots.

On a kite, we have many knots and pullies, they create what we call "alouette" knots, the more you pull, the stronger it is. To prevent the knots, we wrap the knots with a surgical tubing, as tight as possible. It reduces the twisting (from the ropes manuf.) and creates a stable body. But there is a cost to aerodynamics if too many tubes are added. Some have invented a funnel for knot prevention when rolling the strings on the bar. We still use the 8 figure wrap, and it keeps the strings free of twists creating knots. We have some theories on anchorage knot preventing apparatus, we will be testing next summer.

Humans will be puzzled and bugged by knots since prior to their onw birth. Ask my mother how i was able to make a knot before being born ... a choaking experience. Born with a kite in his hands ...

Interesting comment yellowcat.

It seems that knots (entanglement) are the natural order of things. Mankind has, it seems, always gone against the "grain" so to speak and abhorred knots other that the simple and useful ones (to us) such as sailors knots, etc. that is the ones that are easily understandable anyway.

I never would have thought of a screw as a knot though.

Good post.

Ah yes, I remember many years ago, teaching younger others the finicky points of Turk's Heads, Carrick Bends, Jug and Bottle knots and the like.

It's so easy today for the younger set, if they look at the animated Knot Sites.

Kind Regards....